riverview | Video; thunderer [Thor 3 Spoilers]

[You can tell from the moment Thor's face appears on camera, he's been through hell and back. His hair is almost entirely buzzed down, save for the tufts on top, with markings shaved into the sides. His eye is covered by a black patch, indicating an injury that he isn't happy to talk about.]

I've made some changes. [Bluntly, as if he consented to any of this.]

What else.. Some things have happened at home that may be of interest to some of you. [He hums, considering.] Odin is dead. I have another sister? Her name is Hela. Mjolnir is destroyed. Banner is alive. [He feels a little guilty revealing that one, but he thinks someone deserves to know.] I fought the Hulk. I won. I met a real, live Valkyrie- And Asgard is.. [A people, not a place, but..] The realm has been destroyed. My people are seeking refuge, I suppose I understand now what displacement feels like.

I have the remains of Asgard in a ship, floating through space. If a portal could open for them, that would be extremely useful to me right now. I'm a king with no land or people, now. Very poetic. [Does he seem terse? He's kind of tense.

And then Loki comes barging in, looking very much the same and carrying a large parchment. He glances at the recording with a frown. He places the map of Earth on the wall, pinning it with a single dagger.]

Must you reveal everything? Put that away, I have work for you.

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Is that not the nature of people? To form conclusions based on hearsay and assumptions?

[ Which isn't to say Loki doesn't struggle against it, but he does the same thing. It's a hypocrisy he's accepted, not quite circumvented though. ]

What do you want them to know of you? If there is only one thing they can remember and keep in mind?

It's... a tendency. But people just want answers. We get carried away, but I can't blame them for that.

[ Just as he can't help being made uncomfortable by it. Steve is caught, discontent and not sure how to correct it. He makes his own prison and like a lot of people isn't sure how to get around that. ]

I want them to be able to believe. In themselves, not me. I don't have to be their hero. But I am here for them.

[ Loki rests his hand over Steve's heart, steady and cool. ]

Then perhaps you should lead with that. And not give way when they promote you. Push back, Steve.

[Steve looks down at Loki's hand and smiles. It's a reassuring touch, one he's grown to care for deeply.]

If that's what gives them hope, then I have to be there.

It's not my right to take their dreams away.

[ Loki pokes Steve's chest as a tease. ]

I do not think you'll be taking it away so much as changing the narrative.

Is that not your dream? To imbue them as well as yourself? Why be only one?

[ Steve puts his hand over Loki's gently. ]

It doesn't matter who I am. If it isn't me, it'll be someone else carrying the shield. The important part is that people still have someone to look to, to believe won't let them down or abandon them when they need a symbol to pull them through.

I don't mind it. It was never my story. I'm just filling in.

It matters to me.

[ It's a little sharp and Loki bites his tongue at it, looking vaguely contrite. Maybe it hits a little too close to him, akin to his own line of thinking. When being a villain was easy because Loki could simply let that story stand and not care about the rest. Not let anything else matter. ]

It feels like you hold a two-sided dagger. You need it with you, but it cuts you open.

[ He swallows. ]

I don't like that. I don't like your pain. You should have your own story. Here or — anywhere else. Even without me.

It's not just you.

[Steve is surprised by the way Loki seems to suddenly tense up, ready to fight, and fight on his behalf. He was created to be the hope and support for others, to fight the battles they couldn't and inspire them to take on the ones they could. He's always been ready to do what was needed, whether he carried the mantle officially or not, because that has always been part of him. He can't imagine being someone without it. He's been that symbol for almost all of his adult life.]

I accept the pain. It's something only I can do.

[He moves closer, putting a hand on the back of Loki's neck and pulling him forward.]

It might not be my story, but it's a story that means a lot to other people. I volunteered because I wanted to help. I can do it.

But I'd rather do it with you. If you can come to accept him.

[ Loki huffs under his breath, even as he rests his forehead against Steve's tenderly. ]

I chose Steve.

[ Flaws, vices and all. It was not the goodness of Steve's heart that adhered him. It was Steve's willingness to accept him just as Loki was willing to accept Steve. He knows he cannot explain it well if anyone asked him why. Not that Loki cares what other people think. ]

But I . . . won't mind seeing what you show me.

I know you did.

[ He can feel the resistance. The pull that inevitably draws everyone away. He can't blame them for wanting to avoid that complicated life. Bernie had found it too much as well, because loving Steve Rogers was one thing, but learning to deal with Captain America was always going to be a trial. Maybe that's why he was the one that really stuck with it. Everyone else was devoured by the task or got smart. ]

We can both see what happens.

[ There is certainly a part of him that fears Captain America. He's heard too much from Steve not to be wary. It is a bias he knows that lurks close by. He doesn't want to shy away from it, but he gets the feeling that it is Captain America that'll take Steve away more than any other person. ]

I will follow your lead.

[ Loki isn't entirely wrong. The mantel of Captain America is a burden as much as it is a relief. Steve falls back on it because he's familiar with it and when the rest of the world stops making sense, he goes to work. But what will really pull him away from the ones he loves every time is Steve. Steve, the soldier, who still lives in the heat of battle.

He knows that somewhere deep down. That he's not comfortable as a civilian. Being a hero at least gave him room to compromise, but he's not sure where that line is anymore. Steve takes Loki's hand. ]

Follow your heart. We can make it work.

[ He makes a quiet sound at the back of his throat as Loki curls up closer to Steve, his arms snaking around Steve's neck. The heavy loss of Asgard sits around his neck (Loki used to spit out how he wanted it to burn, sentiment should burn because what good has it ever give him but the end of a stick, hanging off a bridge?) and Loki's chest heaves from the weight. His fingers stroke skin softly. ]

I love you. My bright sword.

[Steve wants to be Loki's support. He wants to comfort him, to tell him that no matter how bad things get that they can always pull through and find a happier ending. He wants to tell him he understands, but he doesn't. So he pulls Loki closer and says what he does know.]

I will always be with you. Whenever you need me.

Video; thunderer [Thor 3 Spoilers]

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